CLIMATE CHANGE, MITIGATION OF FLOODS AND DROUGHTS: ONLINE INFORMATIVE AND EDUCATIONAL RESOURCES

Abstract

According to projections, in many regions of the world, heavy rains interspersed with long lasting dry periods are to be expected as a consequence of climate change, which requires adaptation strategies. In fact, dry soils have no time to soak heavy rains that fall quickly, the groundwater resources are not replenished and the aquifers are declining. At the same time, flood prone areas may suffer floods. Notoriously, this is already happening. In the meanwhile shrinking glaciers, and dam reservoirs that lose storage capacity as a consequence of sediment accumulation, further limit water availability downstream. In addition, coastal areas deprived of the sediments trapped in the reservoirs, undergo land losses; the Mississippi river delta has already lost 4,800 km², an area roughly the size of Delaware. The siltation of dam reservoirs can be mitigated; in this regard, several techniques are presented. The intensive exploitation of an aquifer, combined with a limited replenishment, may result in, e.g. land subsidence and seawater intrusion. Several techniques aimed at enhancing the recharge of aquifers, harvesting rainwater and saving water are presented in the article. Urban structures, such as rain gardens, bioswales, permeable asphalt and permeable pavements allow rainwater to infiltrate into the soil, thus recharging aquifers and mitigating overland runoff and floods. Several documents presented in the article deal with improving the liveability of cities, increasingly crowded and hot, thanks to a more efficient water management and planting trees. Our dietary choices, the clothes we wear and the food we waste have an influence on the overexploitation of water resources, sometimes in producing countries very far away from our country.

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